The 2018 MLB Postseason – Division Series

It’s October, and that means it’s time for the baseball playoffs. It’s the best time of year. While I follow baseball all season long, I understand that some people only tune in for the postseason. So, I figured I’d write up a quick and dirty rooting guide for those just tuning in.

One wildcard game went well with the Rockies beating the Cubs in thirteen innings. The other went poorly with the Yankees beating the A’s. No we’re on to the division series.

In the National League there is the Colorado Rockies going to Milwaukee to play the brewers. You can’t really go wrong in this series. As I mentioned before the wildcard games, the Rockies have some really fun players in Blackmon and Story. Arenado is flat out amazing. We should all feel lucky that we get to see him play. They have never won a World Series and they’re the underdogs. The Brewers also have a bunch of fun players like Lorenzo Cain and Mike Moustakas. Christian Yelich should be this season’s MVP in the National League. They have also never won a World Series. You can’t call them an underdog in this series, but it would be nice to shine a light on an oft forgotten baseball city. The one thing going against the Brewers is the fact that Ryan Braun is on their roster. He’s among the top five most unlikable players in baseball. This will be a fun series.

The other National League division series is the Atlanta Braves in Los Angeles to face the Dodgers. It’s hard to go wrong here as well. The Braves are a young, exciting team. Acuna and Albies and Freeman are a joy to watch play. No one expected anything out of this team, so they have the element of surprise. They are the underdogs. And, it feels weird to say this, they haven’t won since 1995. The Dodgers are also a fun team. Yasiel Puig is in the top five most fun players in baseball. Justin Turner is great. And Kiké Hernandez is right up there with Puig. The Dodgers also have Kershaw and Manny Machado. Like Arenado, we want to cherish every opportunity we get to see those two play. The longer they stay in it, the better. The Dodgers haven’t won it all since 1988, so they have the longer drought. Like I said, it’s hard to go wrong.

In the American League we have the Cleveland Indians traveling to Houston to face the Astros. The Indians are the team to root for here. First of all, Jose Ramirez and Francisco Lindor are almost too much fun. The Indians have the longest title drought of any team in baseball. And they’re the underdogs in the American League. I really liked the Astros last year. This year, though, they went out and traded for Roberto Osuna while Osuna was serving a seventy-five game suspension for domestic violence. Knowing there would be some controversy around the trade, they cited their “zero tolerance” policy towards domestic violence. When it was pointed out to them that zero tolerance means they should not trade to get a domestic abuser, they said that the policy doesn’t count because Osuna wasn’t a member of the Astros when the incident occurred. It’s as disgusting as it sounds. I hope the Astros lose and lose badly.

The other American League series is the New York Yankees going to Boston to face the Red Sox. This is the matchup that TV executives have been dreaming about. The most storied rivals meeting in the postseason. This seems like an easy call for the Sox. I already talked about all the things wrong with the Yankees before the wildcard game. It basically boils down to the fact that they’re the Yankees. They’ve won more than everyone else and they’re the most bandwagon team in sports. The Red Sox are a very fun baseball team this year. The press keeps saying they have two MVP candidates in J.D. Martinez and Mookie Betts, but realistically, Betts is the MVP and a joy to watch. The Sox outfield is amazing. It’s where fly balls go to die. Brock Holt, aka the Brockstar, is up there with Kiké and Puig in the fun rankings. I have a feeling this series is going to be a long slog, though.

What it boils down to is the National League will be lots of fun. If the right teams win in the American League, then the Championship Series will be great. I’ll check in again when those are ready to start.